We got married.
It wasn’t certain it would happen. It wasn’t a question of our partnership. It was a question of a ‘Colorado Low’.
I’ve come to loathe this term. I first heard it with the Tuesday weather forecast. My father-in-law, Dennis, who is calm and has a lifetime of prairie storms under his belt said “Ohhhh. A Colorado Low. That’s not good.” I realized then that this snow could be a problem. But it wasn’t until Thursday evening that I came to realize how much this weather system would come to impact our wedding day.
That evening, my cousin called from Alberta to report that Air Canada had canceled his flight. For Friday evening, arriving in Winnipeg. On Thanksgiving weekend. And there wasn’t yet a flake of snow in the provincial sky. I understood then what Derek, ever the realist, had already come to terms with. This wasn’t your average October snow.
Friday: A Storm Approaches
The next 24 hours revealed that all the wedding planning we had done would be put on the backburner to support the emergency logistics planning that was now needed.
Derek and I convoyed with his parents, Joan and Dennis, to our wedding venue in Riding Mountain National Park as we watched the Colorado Low move west, covering the yellow leaves of the rising hills in a grey whirlwind. We had 44 guests arriving from all parts of Manitoba, Canada, and the Pacific Northwest. The trouble with inviting your most precious friends and family to your wedding is when there’s a snowstorm, all your precious people are in varying levels of jeopardy. We arrived to the Lakehouse, the stylish and cozy 15-room guesthouse and lounge, hosting our loved ones and our wedding. We checked in, chatted excitedly with the staff, and unloaded our many boxes of decor and finery. Along with our wedding best, Joan had also lent me her fur coat, now mostly used for shoveling in the extreme cold, to add to our wedding provisions.
We settled into the couches snuggled up to the Lakehouse hearth. We were in the perfect place to ride out the storm with a well-stocked fireplace, a delicious kitchen, and all the games and craft beer needed to watch the snowfall through the big windows overlooking the townsite. All we needed was to help guide everyone else to this winter oasis. On Friday afternoon, we were joined by Derek’s aunt and uncle and my older sister, Rebecca, brother-in-law, Aaron, and niece who arrived early from the north and the west, reporting smooth travels but with stormy horizons.
On Friday morning, my parents, my younger sister, Carrie, and her fiance, Chris, left for Riding Mountain. They arrived at the Trans Canada Highway only to discover it had recently closed to all vehicles due to the weather conditions. The four diverted from the three-hour-route back to Winnipeg and were then guided by Derek through a rural, snow-covered-but-still-open road through The Narrows (isn’t that the aptest name for rural Canadian alternative route?). Eight hours later and at dusk, they came out the other end through a drive that “harrowing” doesn’t seem to capture. They arrived from the North into Wasagaming on a road that was closing as they drove – a road so snowcovered that it wouldn’t open again for nearly 3 days. When they finally pulled in, my sister Carrie raced to the door, as if to make sure they had truly arrived before Mother Nature could obscure the route again. My mother, always calm and even-keeled, arrived with a strong embrace and the statement [warning], “You two have better stay married for a good long time”. As the four weary travelers shrugged off snow in the Lakehouse foyer, my two-year-old niece Juniper strutted up with the confidence and joy only a toddler can achieve and shouted, “Gwamma! Gwampie!” As Juniper was picked up and hugged, the tension of a day-long drive through a prairie snowstorm melted away.
There was a dispersed convey of our close ones following my parents’ route. Word and photos of current road conditions were passed from more northerly cars to those on the tracks behind via the command center – a.k.a. Derek’s phone. Of the four vehicles carrying thirteen people who left Winnipeg after my parents, no one else made into the Park that night. As twilight arrived, they were scattered between back-to-Winnipeg, my in-law’s house (where they had left a key, realizing the severity of the storm ahead), a motel in Derek’s hometown, and …the Narrows Motel.
We had many other guests who, thankfully, were safe and sound and off the road, sometimes with safe arrival in Winnipeg, though for many, they were at the airport or their home, or their family’s, with our national airlines cruelly but mercifully taking away the decision of whether or not to hit the road.
On Friday evening, we modified our supper reservation from 26 to the 13 who had safely arrived, and ate in a staggered fashion, based on arrivals and comfort. Between logistical calls and route planning updates, I chatted with the kind folks at the Lakehouse to go over the plan for our wedding day, as Juniper (who by then had determined, somewhat accurately, that she had the run of the place) created art on their office floor. We planned to meet at 11 am on Saturday morning to kick-off the big day.
As night fell and all our loved ones were safe under a roof, we began to relax in the comfort of the Lakehouse. The massive fireplace had a well-stoked fire, and the lounge was filled with our wedding party and locals, enjoying snacks and craft beer, and talking love and snow.
Saturday, October 12: Our Would-Be Wedding Day
I opened the curtain on Saturday morning to a blanket of snow. In less than 24-hours, about two feet of snow had settled on Wasagaming with no sign of letting up. It was beautiful. As my friend Natalie described in a voicemail with updated, canceled travel plans, the falling snow was “biodegradable confetti.”
Before venturing from the warmth of our room, we communicated via text. Decorating plans were discussed, but my sisters, who were on the upper floor of rooms connected by a deck and open walkway to the stairs had to first be shoveled out. The snow and wind pushed feet of snow against their doors. They bravely ventured out to find shovels and carve a path to the stairs. On the main floor, their upper deck provided shelter as we bundled and bustled into the restaurant and lounge.
Wedding day conditions
*Note: the red on the highway indicates that it is closed to all vehicles.
I found Shonah, the events manager and our snow-day hero, whose 15-minute walk to the Lakehouse took her 45, battling through snow above her knees. No other staff had yet arrived, and with the road conditions, there would be very few who could. Valiantly, she had taken on the role of chef and was generously preparing a modified breakfast menu for our wedding party, something she might have whipped up if we were surprise guests at her own home. I chatted briefly with Shonah about our options for the day, given the current snowfall, the staff available, and the forecast (which, for the record, was 100% “snow and blowing snow” with 40 km/hr wind gusting to 60 km/hr a.k.a. 100% ideal wedding weather). Based on the staffing and the roads, her professional opinion was to delay the wedding, but earnestly offered to cook our entire wedding meal for us, if that’s what we wanted. As Derek roused, we talked wedding day over coffee. He had been communicating weather conditions to all our family and getting updates from our photographers, David and Aralin of the Awaken Collective, who were sending photos from the closed TransCanada and talking about alternate routes to the alternate routes. For the third time that weekend we mulled our options, with the heavy question: should we cancel? Canceling, moving the whole shebang to Derek’s hometown (where the weather was seemingly better), postponing until Sunday, or trying for our original wedding day. With the hopes that more people could make it on safer roads, we decided to move our Saturday afternoon ceremony and dinner to a Sunday noontime ceremony.
We shared the news with our storm-stayed family as they finished their eggs and toast that instead of going to get ready for a wedding, we were instead having a snow day. Derek and I then took to our phones to make the range of phonecalls to our guests who had landed or were stranded in various locations in the province and the country, as well as our florist and photographers who were still trying find a route into Riding Mountain. As we received updates on snow delays and cancellations, our thoughtfully crafted seating chart was deconstructed as we crossed names off of people who could not make it, and stars by the “maybes”. When I first scratched off names on Friday night, the action just seemed so sad, whereas by Saturday morning, it became a practical demonstration of Canadian weather reality.
It was a no-travel day, just as Mother Nature commanded. The two exceptions during the daylight were: Alyce, Shannon, and Nicole, who woke up in the Narrows Motel without power, and therefore heat. And with the highway towards the Park closed, they made the trek over unplowed highways and even over downed powerlines back to the warmth of Winnipeg. Our photographers, as well as trekking through roads no one should have been trekking down, and instead of a getaway post-wedding in a cozy Clear Lake suite, they safely made it back to Winnipeg. At the time, I had no idea how bad the roads were, and we are forever grateful that they, and all our guests, were safe and sound.
Once the news was disseminated and road conditions conferred, we settled into a full snow day. It’s a strange thing. To have the supposed most special day of your life transform into the quiet of a day stopped by snow. If you haven’t experienced a snow day, there’s some magical about it. It arrests the regular rhythm of any day, the rush of tasks and schedules. And on our wedding day, it was especially striking. I, being the planner I am, had scheduled the day out on my phone’s calendar. As Saturday stretched on, I would get a ‘bing’ and a reminder of when to leave the decorating to get dressed. When to head to the group photo. Even when the ice cream sundaes would be served for our wedding cake. The flurry of a wedding day was replaced with coffee by the fireplace. Chasing Juniper around the Lakehouse loop (a.k.a. racing through the Lounge, Shop, check-in desk and bar). Going for a walk to assess the extremes of the weather with my mother and sisters. Scouting the highway conditions with Carrie, all the while dodging and cheering on snowplows (who responded with a hearty honk). Walking to Clear Lake with my still-finance and finding the one other open shop in Wasagaming – the Boardwalk – and stopping in to stay hello (while also assessing their “supplies” … or candy). The welcoming staff gave us ice cream because “we always give ice cream to the bridge and groom!”. Not yet married, we still took them up on it, vanilla for me while Derek opted for a more blizzard-practical cinnamon bun. We returned from our expeditions to warm our rosy cheeks and snow boots by the Lakehouse fire, and when spirits were roused, they were challenged to a game of cribbage or crokinole. The MacDonald side of the family were new to this curling club lounge board game and quickly learned the ways and rules from the Robinsons, developing a fierce competition. People from the community wandered in for news or for shelter, including a German couple who ran out of propane, and therefore heat, in their camper van at a Parks Canada campsite. They quickly warmed up and became invested in the story of this matrimonial blizzard. It was the kind of day that everyone felt close and cozy, but still let our a communal cheer when the plow carved the one-lane path to the wider world.
As the day rolled on and more logs were added to the fire, we heard rumblings from friends assessing the roads. Our four friends traveling from Edmonton were holed up with Derek’s aunt Doreen, cousin, Anna, Brian and thier two girls at the Dauphin Emergency Center (a.k.a. my inlaw’s home). It must be strange meeting fellow wedding guests for the first time nowhere near the wedding venue and snacking on the pierogies and root veggies prepared for our Sunday post-wedding Thanksgiving dinner. The four friends went out on a fact-finding mission to assess the state of the still-officially-closed roads. With a couple of hours remaining before dark, they decided to make a run for it. More specifically, the text chain went:
Ellen: “Shovel off that hot tub! I think we’re gonna try and make a run for it.”
Hannah: “Oh my gosh! Are the roads open?”
Ellen: “….no”
Ellen: “But!”
Ellen: “We drove on them.”
Ellen proceeded to describe the highways. The direct route through Riding Mountain was “impassable”, but the longer route along the highways hugging the park boundaries seemed to have vehicles passing through. More time-stamped photos of road conditions were shared and a requirement to send frequent travel updates, they were off. But first, they stopped at our florist’s.
Yes, our florist’s. Barb, of the Lemontree, was set to deliver our flowers at 11 am on Saturday morning. But, with all the highways in and out of the Park closed, there was no way those flowers were arriving to the Lakehouse. She and I stayed in touch to see what our options were and alternate routes for the flower delivery. I had previously discussed the potential of flower collection with our Edmontonian crew, in the tone of: if you’re attempting the journey to Riding Mountain, be safe, don’t push it. And if you are driving down Main Street and past the Lemontree and it’s not dangerous to stop, our flowers are there, looking for a lift. Off the four went and we waited anxiously for updates.
Given our revised Sunday wedding, we realized we would cut a lot of the activities. The Cocktail Hour. The First Dance. The Wedding Ice Cream Sundaes. And, most clearly and most sadly, our Wedding Reception. We had a fantastic dance floor planned, with white lights hung on Friday, and a serious dance party playlist curated by us, our DJ and MC and bestie, Alyce, and my sisters. (It’s a seriously fun playlist – check it out here!). Derek, not one for the dance floor, wanted to ensure that the non-dancers would enjoy the party and collected cards, board games, and crokinole to foster cozy competitions and conversation. All of this supported by a host bar with each guest receiving a pile of drink tickets. None of this party would play out as we planned on Sunday afternoon. After we married and had lunch, many people need to drive or fly home, and we knew it would be a quick wrap to our Sunday wedding. So, we decided to have a bit of a snowstorm ‘reception’ instead. In discussions with Shonah and Carly, one of the owners and our exceptionally gracious host, we received the drink tickets for all the people present and en route. Craft beer and red wine was poured, increasing the cozy effect of the Lakehouse lounge. We resolved to a quieter version of the wedding party.
At 6:33 PM, just as my phone also reminded me that our wedding speeches would be beginning, the winter storm warning ended. While our Edmonton friends approached, we got word from our friends Tad and TJ that they were setting out. The Haligonian and Edmontonian had just met the previous day after our kind and welcoming marriage officiant and Derek’s childhood friend Ben, hosted them on storm-stayed Friday night. For Saturday night, they had Hotwire’d rooms in Winnipeg and were settling in when they also received the notification that the roads were officially open. The sun was setting, but the salt was out, and so they set out. En route, they collected my bestie Alyce who had only recently returned to Winnipeg from The Narrows and its frosty Motel. With great worry and great anticipation, we watched Alyce’s shared location and sweet face bop along a digital map of the freshly opened highways.
Ellen, Alex, Kyle, and Alyssa, our four Edmontonian friends trekking from Dauphin, had a hero’s welcome to the Lakehouse. Layered in snow and florals, they arrived with wild stories of motel parking snowdrifts and ice bucket shovels, all to get to Riding Mountain. We got them settled into their room (with the room assignment modified based on which doors were shoveled out) and got to hear about their journeys to arrive and their many life adventures since the last time we met.
Back in the Lounge, our weary friends pondered their supper order. And then. Darkness. The power went out. Because, of course, it would in this wild winter wedding weekend. Checking online, there were 42,000 fellow Manitoba Hydro customers without electricity. The surprise storm had put a beating to the powerlines, infrastructure unfamiliar with this heavy, wet snow. The Lakehouse staff, being prepared, began lighting candles and stoked the fire. A generator roared to life, powering the kitchen fridges, stuffed with a full wedding’s food. Our weary friends made a revised order, ranging from cold plates and still-hot soup.
Despite the power outage, the warnings to keep the room doors closed to keep the heat in, and the questions about power-less wedding day logistics, the evening continued. The atmosphere was beautiful. Candlelight provides a special aura to an evening. Light is limited, so it creates focus. Here we were, with some of the most important people in our lives, collectively bonded over the blizzard still blowing outside.
Just before 11 PM, the trio from Winnipeg arrived. Derek and I rushed out in the snow to greet them, relieved to see they were alive and well and parked for the night. They entered the Lakehouse to another hearty hero’s welcome. Everyone in the Lakehouse had been following their journey, anxiously asking for updates; we were all in this together. With their arrival, all our guests traveling in any part of the country were settled for the night. We raised a glass together, to everyone’s journey, to those who were stormstayed, to everyone in our beautiful, loving community.
The atmosphere was intimate and the conversations grew louder. Tad asked if I would like him to perform a magic show. “That would be amazing!” I replied, and it was. Tad pulled his cards and everyone gathered round. Then, the lights came on! Beautiful, powerful, functional electricity flowed back into Clear Lake. I was so relieved. Tomorrow would be smoother. And then, we raced around the Lounge, turning out all the lights again to maintain the warm, quiet glow of candlelight. Magic is better by candlelight. Tad took us through a winding story filled with jokes and illusions, unexplainable and delightful. The collective awe at the slight-of-hand added to the whimsy of the would-be wedding day.
Midnight arrived. Some drifted off to bed while DJ Fair Jeanne (a.k.a. Alyce) stepped in. With the power back on, we could upgrade from the wood acoustic speaker (provided in each room at the Lakehouse – a brilliant addition) to the far more powerful lounge speakers. Alyce, our DJ, took charge of my phone and modified the six-hour list into the purest of hits. After midnight, every song must be a jam, or you risk losing folks to their pillows. And it was nothing but. The songs we know and love and the ones we forgot we know but deeply love. My brothers-in-law, Chris and Aaron, were still facing off at the crokinole table, which we collectively moved further and further from the “dance floor.” We had a beautifully decorated space in the Lakehouse’s parlour, but the natural open space at the entrance to the Lounge became the very best dance floor. I had resigned myself to going without a reception, without a dance party. But, instead, we had on of the heartiest. Instead of heels and chiffon, we had Bluntstones and denim. Each song elicited a ‘whoop’ or another person rising to their feet to dance. The playlist was supplemented by requests by my father, sprinkling our modern playlist with classics. Dad and I never did have an official father-daughter dance. But we did break it down to Flashdance’s Maniac, dancing like we’ve never danced before.
Derek and I had no intention of wasting a moment of this brief time with our far-flung friends. The games and dancing continued until we were the last few standing; arm-in-arm and shouting the lyrics to Champagne Supernova. At 4 AM, we blew out the rest of the candles, attempted to tidy (keeping in mind the incredibly hard-working Lakehouse staff), and hugged before we shuffled through the freshly fallen snow and went off to bed.
Sunday: A Day of Love and Gratitude
Eight am came early on Sunday morning. Derek and I snuggled up, capturing another moment of calm before the day began. Neither of us being morning people, we chuckled at the fact that we had somehow ended up with an early wedding ceremony, something we previously aimed to avoid.
Derek took to more cell-phone coordination with our friends and family looking to travel into the Park. We got word that Ben, our marriage commissioner, and his wife Lisa, were en route. With a commissioner, we could officially get married! I opened the curtain to piles of snow, but lighter, brighter snow. I left Derek to catch some extra moments of rest and headed into the Lounge to get ready for our big day. I was greeted by Shonah and Carly and we sat down to discuss the day’s logistics. Many modifications were already made, and we crafted a few more. Instead of a seated ceremony and cocktail hour before dinner, we prepared the dinner tables to allow an aisle for the ceremony and prepared to go directly from the ceremony into our wedding lunch. My mother and sisters and a few friends began to arrive and the buzz of excitement grew. Still hazy from my short sleep, I asked those nearby to please talk loudly elsewhere, and Shonah asked if I would like smoothie. How did she know!? Sipping on wild-berries, the plan of the day became clear and my energy grew. It was time to decorate.
One of the reasons we chose to get married at the Lakehouse is because of its aesthetic. The space has been beautifully renovated with gorgeous wood, modern lighting, and lovely decor. We could have done nothing and it would have looked great. (This thought was comforting when we weren’t sure if our flowers would arrive!). It was an all-hands-on-deck decorating committee. I provide fuzzy instruction and it was transformed into a gorgeous space. The tables were layers of fabric, cedar, ruscus, and eucalyptus. I explained the concept to Rebecca and Alyce and I felt as if I turned around and they had gathered troops to decorate the tables into floral glory. We decorated our welcome table, proudly displaying our welcome sign where none of the information, except our names, remained accurate. As no candles were allowed (prior to all-plans-are-off blizzard), we thought of having flowers floating in small bowls. Carrie asked me about the mini-carnations and I explained the idea but that it was a low priority given the busy morning of preparations. A few minutes later I saw Carrie and Ellen struggling through their early-morning fog to coerce mini-carnations to stay afloat in little glass dishes. Joan, my mother-in-law, pulled out beautiful collections of photos of Derek and I throughout our lives up to a portrait of us in Vancouver. These photos were arranged into our wedding activity – an idea spurred on by Natalie and Raph’s wedding – notes penned by guests to Derek and I on our first, fifth, tenth and twenty-fifth wedding anniversaries. I also placed out the beautiful table numbers that Derek created with photos from places we’ve traveled together. Now that we had just three tables and had long since ditched the seating plan, the table numbers were moot, but still worthy of display. The Lakehouse staff were moving with grace and speed to make our wedding day come together, while still adding touches throughout to make the space flow and add that something special. We rigged up the rented speaker, and graciously, Shonah offered to manage our walking up and down the aisle music, as I texted her song links and timing. In under two hours with many, many hands, the lounge was ready for a wedding.
I walked back to our room and passed the hot tub. It had been freshly shoveled off and Kyle was in for a dip. Our Edmontonian crew had missed the evening soak due to the power outage and were making up for it in the am. I arrived in our room and Derek has still exhausted. I stirred him with a sweet reminder of our wedding day. And that the hot tub was open and ready for him. With the hot tub temptation, he got out of bed and got the Big Day started. Derek headed out for the tub and my mother, my sisters, and Alyce all came into our room to start to get ready. Mimosas were poured, rollers heated, and dresses unfurled. However, in the midst of it all, the hot tub just looked so lovely. My sisters gave me wise warning that our 12:30 ceremony was quickly approaching and the bride does need time to get ready. But given that all best laid plans were lost in a snowstorm, I felt there was some wiggle room for a dunk. We negotiated that I would enjoy the hot tub but with rollers in my hair. So really, I was getting ready the entire time. Sinking into the hot water with friends who traveled from across the country and soon-to-be husband was a delight. There was a calm to the steam rising into the still-falling flakes as we sat surrounded by piles of snow and loved ones putting on their best. I can highly recommend taking a dip in a hot tub to ease any wedding day anxieties.
Returning to our room-turned-bridal-suite, the getting ready started in earnest. Alyce corraled my locks into waves. Carrie guided me through my make-up. Rebecca and Mom steamed my dress. Dad prepared the boutonnieres. Sue and Shannon arrived from Winnipeg, reporting clear roads following wild winter stories. Our dear photographers and soon-to-be friends, David and Aralin, who arrived in the morning decorating flurry, moved gracefully through the Lakehouse, allowing us to feel at ease and in the moment, while also ensuring that all the key elements were captured. We raised our glasses again to being together and to looking so fine and to love. And Juniper lead us through a rousing rendition of “Baby Shark.” It’s a strange thing to bring all these important people together to get ready to walk down the aisle. There’s something so intimate and unique that made me want to hold on, to wait in our robes a little longer. This time felt like it had natural momentum though I know it was driven by thoughtful manoeuvering of the other women in the room. It culminated in Mom zipping me into my white dress, placing my Nana’s silver bracelet, picking up my bouquet and wrapping the stem with my Grandma’s scarf, and seeing that my family surrounded me, beautiful and dapper and ready.
The Ceremony
We got word that our guests awaited us. My parents, my sisters, and my niece walked from our room, brightly lit with the reflective snow into the parlour just before the ceremony. Juniper, our flower girl, and Rebecca led the way. Juniper practiced tossing a few flowers as she approached the Lounge, and then with the surprise of the guests standing and smiling down at her, she tossed the remainder of her basket. It was adorable and the aisle was ready. Carrie followed and then I walked arm-in-arm with my parents, to the tune of Song for the Mira. We walked between our friends and family, ending at the hearth in the warmest hugs.
Ben, Derek’s childhood friend, our marriage commissioner and shelter to storm-stayed, welcomed everyone to the extra-intimate ceremony. A great orator, he wove in the acknowledgment of the land we were on, Thanksgiving gratitude to our community taking part in this ceremony, gratitude to those who wanted to take part but the weather had other plans, stories of shared history, and love. With the fire glowing, Derek and I read our vows to each other, promises for a strong, lifelong partnership together. We signed the paperwork, after Carrie graciously and rapidly fetched it from its safe storage place inside my bookbag in the bridal suite. With our handmade rings exchange, a kiss, and Ben’s pronouncement, we were husband and wife! After a tumultuous weekend, a day delay, and all plans discarded, we were officially and lovingly married.
After we walked down the aisle, we had a quiet moment of delight to acknowledge the occasion. Then, we all headed into the winter wonderland to take a photo of all of us together. Back inside, we sat down to celebratory feast. Our meals were pleasing to multiple senses, which helped because after the soup, I could manage only a few bites of each plate as the whirlwind of the weekend settled and my body was not hungry but simply happy. A small tragedy because the food was so. good.
Dessert followed with speeches. Though we organized it, I still felt almost uneasy to have our parents and siblings speak so warmly about the two of us and our relationship. The words were filled with a deep understanding of us and a bright light of where are our marriage will go. With some very well-placed jabs keep us grounded.
The on-going snowfall, original Thanksgiving plans, and travel itineraries soon pulled people away. There was a flow of photos, and goodbyes, and then Derek and I were whisked off to capture the day with David and Aralin in the wintertide spots they had scouted. They had come prepared with blankets and winter boots, allowing us to took full advantage of the white blanket on the fall colours. We took over Wasgaming’s quiet roads and the pier extending into Clear Lake. I could expound on how they made us feel handsome and special and excited and celebrated, but their photos do speak for themselves.
We returned to the Lakehouse to see that our families and our Lakehouse friends had efficiently returned the Lounge to its pre-wedding state. Decor back in boxes, greenery returned to containers, and luggage moved to the door. More tearful goodbyes as Rebecca, Aaron, and Juniper headed west. The Robinsons, the remainder of the MacDonalds, Alyce, and TJ all headed back to Dauphin (via the longer, but open, highway) to Thanksgiving dinner.
Joan had organized a 6 PM Thanksgiving dinner for us based on the post-wedding day schedule. We were very well fed at lunch, and by 9 PM, we were ready for another feast. We reflected on the adventures of the past 72 hours and savoured the feeling of being joined together as one large family. We heard the poem penned by Derek’s aunt Doreen who made the valiant effort to arrive. Unfortunately, the storm pulled them off the roads, but they were safe at the ‘Dauphin Emergency Shelter’ where the words were later read. We sat around the living room together talking until the long wedding day caught up with us.
Well-fed and well-loved, we were married. We weren’t sure it would happen. And it certainly didn’t go according to plan. But it was all the more special for it.
Weddings: A Lesson in Love
We’re now happily married, embarking on the next stage of our partnership. Our wedding was an incredibly special day, packed with far more memories and adventures than anticipated. Through the many changes, cancellations, and compromises with Mother Nature, this matrimonial experience provided some valuable lessons.
I learned how important it is to prioritize the key elements of the wedding that are valuable to you. We wanted an intimate wedding with close friends and family with the ability to really spend time together. We sought a venue that would be warm, welcoming, and would simplify the planning required (e.g. great aesthetic, delicious food, and kind staff). We wanted a talented photographer to capture the day. These pieces were most important to us. However, through the wedding planning process, there were times when we (I) got caught up in the details of floral selection, signage design, and wedding weekend logistics. These were details that were not vital to our enjoyment of our day, but still felt very important at the time. Then, when the wedding weekend came, all that stress was for naught. The flowers fussed over almost didn’t make it. The table number stands we crafted ended up staying in their boxes because we had half the guest we planned. There were many other details I spent time weighing and researching that, in the end, was unnecessary. The blizzard tossed out all those plans and we rebuilt our wedding day. We rebuilt it using those key pieces – our community, a special space, delicious food and drink, and time together. Having these key pieces to guide us, it made our tough decisions easier. And I lament the time wasted stressing over little details that truly did not matter. You never know what can happen on your wedding day. One thing or another won’t go according to plan, and the day will stay special if you keep what’s important close and trust that the rest will be fine.
I learned that weddings both be a celebration and a test of your relationship. Derek and I had a rollercoaster of a wedding week. We cycled through excitement to fear to anxiety to anticipation. I experienced the week in highs and lows, and Derek at an even-keel. When we had to discuss potentially canceling our wedding, all of our knowledge of each other, how to communicate with each other made this difficult conversation easier. We consoled each other through the cancellations and celebrated the wins. Weddings are not a simple day to celebrate. Weddings, and the process leading up to them, are an experience that is created together, with as many challenging decisions as there are fun ones. Weddings are a surprising but valuable test. As Mother Nature tested us, it reconfirmed our partnership and why we were getting married in the first place.
Photographers: David and Aralin of the Awaken Collective
Flowers: Barb Tuzyk and the team at the Lemontree Florist, Dauphin, MB
Venue, menu, and snow day grace: Shonah, Carly, Jody, Julia, Kris, and the whole team at The Lakehouse, Wasagaming, MB
Wedding rings: handmade under the guidance of Caitlyn Purcell of Salty Rose’s and the Periwinkle Cafe, Ingonish, NS
Valiant effort to attend: all our guests, present in person and in spirit
Biodegradable snow and memorable adventures: Mother Nature
